Beach Weddings
Florida Beach Weddings
Your Beach Wedding Photography Specialist!
Stephanie Snow is your premier Beach Wedding Photographer.Â
Based in Englewood, we're on Manasota Key, Venice Island, Boca Grande, Palm Island, Lido Key, and Siesta Key every week. We know the ins and outs of every island.
Beach photography is a specialty because of the challenging and always changing lighting conditions. We are experts at capturing the best photographs and truest colors. Â
Relax and enjoy your special day, knowing that we're capturing every single moment so that you can remember it forever.
THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN PLANNING YOUR BEACH WEDDING!
Getting married on the Gulf of Mexico can be a dream come true. After photographing hundreds of families and beach weddings on Manasota Key, Venice Beach, Nokomis Beach and Boca Grande, here are some things to think about when planning your beach wedding.
1. The time of day you get married matters! Let me explain. Couples often call me and tell me they want to get married at sunset on the beach. I always ask, "Do you want to get married at sunset or have great sunset photos?" Because they are two different things. If you get married at sunset, any family photos and couple's photos will be in the dark. What I recommend is that you plan your ceremony at least 90 minutes before sunset. That gives you approximately 30 minutes for your ceremony, 30 minutes for family photos afterwards (if you have a small wedding), and the last 30 minutes-at sunset-will be spent photographing your couples photos. For most couples, this is what they really want, they just didn't realize it.
2. Consider a morning wedding. In the summer months, the sun doesn't set until 8:30 which means if you start at 7 pm, you have spent your whole wedding day apart from your significant other, friends and family. Plus trying to figure out how to start your reception with dinner at 9 pm is a bit late. Many couples wisely choose to have a morning ceremony, around 10 a.m. Yes you're getting ready early with your hair and makeup team, but they are used to it and are you really sleeping well the night before your wedding anyways?
By getting married in the morning, you can then have a fantastic lunch and spend the rest of the day celebrating with your new spouse, family and friends. It is also usually much cooler in the morning, which means you stay fresher by avoiding the hot Florida sun AND since the sun is coming from the East, you get beautiful morning light shining directly on your ceremony.
If your wedding is between November and March, the sun sets at a reasonable time so many weddings take place around 4-5 pm. But a morning wedding might still be a great idea so you can enjoy being married, all day long. Take a moment and think about it!
3. The beaches on Englewood and Venice are public and you don't need a permit to get married on the beach. But remember, since they are public, plan on having people around in bathing suits. Mike and I strive to minimize the "extras" in your photos, but I do not photoshop stray people out of your photos. We are great at finding angles with the least amount of sunbathers and often photograph zoomed in to avoid people.
4. Couples often tell me that they choose me as their beach wedding photographer because they like the look of my photos. I don't use filters or change color tones while editing because I honestly love the color of the sky and water at the beach. As you look through my the beach wedding photos, you should notice that some are photos are bright and vivid, while others are muted. This is because of CLOUDS and the position of the sun. The light constantly changes throughout the day and even throughout your 90 minutes on the beach. We know how to handle it all. I shoot "natural light" when I can, which means I use the sun to my advantage but I use my flash to capture you and our beautiful sunset colors. in the evening.
5. Really think about your guests and who's coming to the wedding.
*I always recommend you have chairs for people to sit down on, even for small weddings. It can be tiresome for older family members to try to stand on the (hot) sand for an entire wedding. Plus, it allows for better photos because we'll be able to focus on you, and not people standing around you.
*Consider water bottles for your guests to grab as they sit down. They'll be arriving early and sitting in the hot sun while waiting for the ceremony to start, so this can be a thoughtful touch. Please also provide a place for them to return the bottles so no one is littering at the beach.
6. Please consider a wedding planner/coordinator. Many couples think that planning a "small" 30-50 person wedding at the beach is easy, but there are so many details that have to come together on your wedding day that it's definitely worth it to hire a coordinator. Hire the professional to set up the arch, arrange the flowers, set up the chairs, make sure the music is on site and ready to go, not to mention everything that's happening at your reception venue. Plus, when the wedding is over and you go to your reception, the planner is the one breaking down the ceremony site, not you, your family or friends. It's your wedding day. You and your family should be focused on enjoying every minute of this experience, not stressing over every little detail. When you hire me, I know several wedding planners that I can highly recommend.
WHAT TO WEAR TIPS
Every bride finds her own dream dress. Brides wear anything from light and airy dresses, to long formal gowns with 20 foot trains. So find a dress you love, and have confidence that you'll look great and feel beautiful.
One important tip though is: CONSIDER AN UPDO. There's a 99.9% chance the breeze will be blowing on the beach. Having your hair up and away from your face creates one less distraction, not to mention that it keeps you cooler and your curls won't fall in the humidity.
What about the men? You guessed it. They choose anything from suits, shirt's with ties, vests, button downs and even shorts in the summer!
What should your wedding party wear? It's the beach, so you have a neutral color palette to work with. Vibrant colors really stand out, while pastels create a softer, dreamy look. As you can imagine, blue is a popular accent color and comes in all shades and variations.
How about shoes and bouquets? I've seen women wear high heels on the sand (which they admit made it a bit more difficult to walk), so most brides choose flats or even go barefoot with pretty feet decor.
And flowers, bouquets of all sizes with your favorite flowers are perfect. A new trend is wooden flower bouquets, which can be bought off Etsy, and impossible to tell from real flowers. Here's some idea inspiration.